Could it have been the 13-inning marathon against the Giants that ended Sunday evening?

Or maybe the credit goes to Brewers starter Zach Davies.

Whatever the reason, the Cubs got out to a slow start offensively on Labor Day Monday, but turned it on late to coast to a 7-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in front of 43,662 (mostly Cubs) fans at Miller Park.

The Cubs didn't score until the sixth when Jorge Soler lifted a broken-bat single into shallow left-center to bring home Tommy La Stella.

In the seventh, Chris Coghlan notched a two-out RBI hit and then came around to score when La Stella's single bounced out of Brewers second baseman Scooter Gennett's glove and into shallow right field.

The Cubs really broke the game open in the eighth inning with Heyward driving in a run on a fielder's choice (and another Brewers error), Javy Baez scoring Addison Russell with a perfectly-executed bunt and then Coghlan's two-run single.

"Everybody was contributing," Joe Maddon said. "There were a lot of good at-bats. Their guy's good. Davies, I have a lot of respect for him, He's a good, young pitcher.

"... One of our goals is to score first, but we've been able to overcome early deficits and we've got that strong believability that we can. That's a bit part of our recent success."

Coghlan - who was 2-for-2 with three RBI off the bench - echoed his manager's thoughts about the Cubs' late comebacks.

"That's the belief," Coghlan said. "If we don't do it right out of the game, then our belief is always that we'll do it before it's over. That's why it's tough to shut us out and to keep us down.

"Lately, it seems like we've been doing it later in games, which I mean that's what you gotta do to win. You gotta do it in the beginning - punch them in the mouth - and if you don't, then you gotta do it late and steal one from 'em.

"That's what we've done and I think that's a reason why we win so many games."

Kyle Hendricks did what he does best - saved the bullpen after a crazy game the day before.

For the fourth straight time in such situations, Hendricks picked up a victory, surrendering only one run in six innings to lower his MLB-leading ERA to 2.07.

"After really awkward games, he has really picked us up," Maddon said. "That's just who he is. He normally gets you deeply into the game.

"... You pretty much have an idea what you're gonna get when he goes out there - strike-throwing, they gotta put the ball in play, they gotta move it. He normally does not get himself into trouble."

Hendricks' only real mistake was a homer by Chris Carter to lead off the second inning and the Cubs' potential Cy Young candidate improved to 14-7 on the season.

"I don't think there's any doubt [Hendricks is a Cy Young candidate]," catcher Miguel Montero said. "Is there anybody having a better year so far as him? I mean, he probably doesn't have as many innings as other guys, but that's not his fault, put it that way.

"He gives you his best every time he goes out there. The way he's been pitching, I don't see anybody that's been pitching as good.

"He's a complete pitcher. He knows he needs to pitch in order for him to get away with stuff, he needs to be smart about it and he needs to locate his pitches."

For his part, Hendricks shrugged off any talk of individual awards, deflecting to talk about his teammates.

"Personal accolades are something that just comes along with playing well," Hendricks said. "We're all here for staying healthy in September, getting ready for October and do it as a team."

Latest Cubs Talk

What will the Cubs do with Nico Hoerner once - or if - Addison Russell is able to return to the field?

Russell is still in concussion protocol and it's unknown when he will resume baseball activities. There are no clear timelines for head injuries and every person responds differently.

He was still showing symptoms this weekend after taking a 94 mph fastball to the face in Milwaukee last Sunday. Russell meets with team doctors each day, but will be relegated to the bench until he is given medical clearance to return.

Even if Russell is able to play again over these next couple days, how could the Cubs possibly take Hoerner out of the lineup right now?

The rookie collected 3 more hits Saturday, including a 3-run homer in the sixth inning:

"Nico's performance cannot be overlooked," Joe Maddon said Saturday morning. "That [homer] was the first pitch he saw yesterday? I mean, c'mon. And beyond that, the thing I'm really focused on is the defense. He's really done a nice job on defense, which we really need that moment out there. The offense has been a plus.

"I have not given that thought until I know that Addison is ready to rock and roll. And once he does, I know one thing for sure - even if Nico were to start the game, we could upgrade the defense later with Addison in the game, too. So it's one of those things - I don't even permit myself to go there. I don't even know if [Russell is] gonna play or not. I don't know that.

"So in the meantime, Nico: just keep doing what you're doing. He's impressed probably the industry, but more importantly - the clubhouse. The guys have really been impressed by him."

It’s been a nightmare season for Russell. He missed the first month serving out the rest of his suspension for violating MLB's domestic violence policy. He was optioned to Triple-A Iowa initially after the suspension and then came up to the big leagues, where he struggled and was unable to carve out consistent playing time despite the Cubs' need for production at second base.

Russell was then demoted to the minors again in late-July after persistent baserunning/mental mistakes. When Javy Baez went down with injury on the last homestand, Russell stepped in to play shortstop (his natural position), but committed a throwing error in three straight games last weekend in Milwaukee.

Less than a week ago, Hoerner was sitting at home in Oakland with his family, thinking his regular season was done and getting ready to play in the Arizona Fall League soon.

Now, he and his family are at Wrigley Field, soaking it all in:

"It's been amazing. Every other aspect of our lives is in complete chaos."@Kelly_Crull caught up with Keila Diehl -- Nico Hoerner's mom -- to see what it's been like for the family since the Cubs called up Hoerner from Double-A on Monday. pic.twitter.com/pMppN8PdqB

"[My first game at Wrigley] was amazing. It felt like I had always hoped it would," Hoerner said. "Something you think about for a long time and it definitely lived up to the hype. I had hyped it up to my family a lot just from seeing one game here last year. I said it was unlike anything I had ever seen before and they agreed."

After his debut week, it's natural for fans to wonder if Hoerner should be the Cubs' starting shortstop on a playoff roster even if Russell is able to come back healthy. Baez's exact timeline looms as an x-factor here, too.

Who knows how this will all play out over the next two weeks, but the Cubs have to get to October first and right now, Hoerner is clearly the answer to help them do so.

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Latest Cubs Talk

While the Cubs are battling the last-place Pirates at Wrigley Field and trying to claw their way back into an enviable spot in the pennant race, their top two competitors are squaring off in St. Louis.

The Cardinals and Brewers are playing each other this weekend, and the Redbirds already took Game 1 Friday night. With that and the Cubs' big win, it moves the Brewers 1 game behind the Cubs in the fight for the final National League playoff spot. But it also kept the Cubs 4 games behind the Cardinals in the division with only 15 to play.

No matter what happens down in the shadow of the arch, the Cubs have to take care of business themselves this weekend. That much is a given.

The perfect scenario would include sweeping the Pirates and the fourth-place Reds before the Cardinals come into town for a four-game series beginning Thursday night.

But the series in St. Louis is prime fodder for scoreboard watchers, and it also brings about an interesting conundrum for Cubdom: Are fans and the team rooting for the Cardinals or Brewers?

The Cardinals already won the first game, but if they were to sweep and the Cubs also sweep, the Cubs would remain 4 games back of the division with only 13 to play. However, they would also hold a 3-game lead on the Brewers in the Wild-Card race, which is crucial given Milwaukee's schedule the rest of the way is cake (San Diego, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Colorado).

If the Brewers storm back to win the next two games while the Cubs take care of their own business, it would diminish the NL Central lead to only 2 games with 13 to play — including 7 head-to-head matchups between the Cubs and Cardinals.

Which is the better scenario?

"Our goal is to win the division, so you want any kind of help you could possibly get to win the division," Joe Maddon said Saturday morning. "So that would be that the Brewers would beat the Cardinals. It doesn't matter — just Cubs win, Cubs win. We just gotta take care of our own house and if you do that, this is all gonna work out properly.

"Rooting interests or whatever — yes, I did look at the score before I went to bed last night, but I was much happier about the fact that we really swung the bats well [Friday] and the bullpen was great."

The Cubs have admitted over the last few weeks that they've been scoreboard-watching a bit and are cognizant of the incredible run the Cardinals have been on. They also have the advantage of playing in the afternoon both Friday and Saturday and seeing their games conclude before the Brewers and Cardinals even begin.

But that doesn't mean the players care one way or the other.

"Earmuffs — we don't give a shit about what anybody else is doing," Jason Heyward said. "We have enough fun right here with what we can control and after that, we leave it up to whatever's going on. That's out of our hands.

"We've done a lot of winning [at Wrigley Field] fortunately and that's fun to be a part of. But along with that is not worrying about what everybody else is doing. And that's the fun part of this job and the fun part about being with a group of guys like this here."

Even if the players aren't super concerned with scoreboard watching, Cubs fans are going to have their eyes glued to the box scores early next week, too. Before the Cardinals come to Wrigley, they will host the Wild-Card-leading Washington Nationals for three games Monday through Wednesday.

That means if the Cubs continue to win, they will be guaranteed to gain ground on at least one of the teams they're chasing each day.

Of course, if the Cubs can't win at home — where they're 48-24 this season — this is all a moot point.